Since its origination, NATO has evolved, taking on the anti-terrorist effort. It is currently undergoing an investigation concerning their actions in Libya, actions such as the 9,600 strike missions that were conducted. These missions were successful in that they destroyed command centers, guns, tanks, and other assets that were being used by terrorists. However, they were also tragic; taking into account that some resulted in civilian deaths. NATO has stated that during their these missions, they had done everything in their power to ensure the safety of the civilians. As stated by prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, “there are allegations of crimes committed by NATO forces [and] these allegations will be examined impartially and independently.” This inquiry will be performed to determine whether NATO was really in accordance with a U.N. Security Council resolution. Mr. Moreno-Ocampo did not elaborate on the source of the accusations or their exact makeup. There is still some research being conducted by a U.N. Commission of Inquiry in Libya. This information should be submitted by March of 2012.
This situation certainly highlights the global balancing act of trying to protect its citizens, but not going too far. The idea of pre-empting a war is dangerous. The finiteness of the human race, with its egocentricity, ethnocentricity, prejudice, etc makes it impossible to know exactly what the right course of action is for the global population. Alternatively, without organizations such as NATO, would there be much more destruction and mayhem? The conundrum that the world is faced with here is; should there be pre-empt war efforts that involve violence?
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/nov/14/nato-countries-may-face-war-crimes-inquiry/
1 comment:
Hi Hannah,
I really liked your presentation today. To answer your question posed at the end of your summary on war and violence, I believe that the government should not act out in violence to combat the enemy. What I have learned this semester is, violence on any side is not good. Even if the sovereign power deems it necessary to kill millions to protect others, I do not feel that is just. Over the past 14 weeks we have learned that violence only causes tremendous strife. Like you said in class today, psychological harm is a big issue during war. Earlier this month we learned that over one million Afghans have died in the war ..it is so sad to know all those innocent lives were lost and we are still living. It is hard to know what we can do..but if we start at the local level our strength in reform can grow.
thanks for sharing this article!
Anna
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